Halt Carrick
Halt Carrick was a senior Ranger of the Corps, and considered one of the best, if not the best. He is made famous from his great part in the defeat of Morgarath in the first battle against the wargals and Morgarath himself. As with most other Rangers, there are rumors of him being a "sorcerer" due do his uncanny abilities in unseen movement. He takes two apprentenices, Gilan, son of the famous Sir David, and now legendary Will Treaty, at the time just called Will. He is involved in many great achievements of Araluen. During the last year of training Will, he marries the diplomatic leader for Redmont, Lady Pauline. The Most Famous Ranger Halt is most likely the greatest Ranger in the corps. His actions have been told all around Araluen and even beyond that. He is most famous for being a key part in the defeat of The Lord of the Mountains of Rain and Night, Morgarath, during the Battle Against Morgarath I, and for helping lead the armies in Skandia which led to the defeat of the attack of the Temujai and the signing of the Skandia-Araluen Treaty. He was also very well known for his very impressive ranger skills, perhaps surpassing that of the Corps commandment, Crowley. Little was known about Halt's past until he confessed a few things during The Kings of Clonmel. He is actually a son of Clonmel dynasty, and was actually heir to the throne. But his brother Ferris, resentful of his twin brothers future, attempted to kill him by leaving him out in a river. Halt, however, survived and made to live in Araluen. He eventually befriended Crowley and reinstated the Corps of Rangers. Soon after, Halt began to train Gilan as his apprentice. Somewhere during that time, he traveled with the Temujai, gaining their trust, as there was little known about them. He learned the secrets of their recurve bows and their specially trained horses. He stole a pack of the horses and fled, the Temujai following close behind. The horses he stole were trained more by the Rangers and became known as Ranger horses. Later he was responsible for the defeat of Morgarath's army, which created an intense hatred for him in the former Baron of Gorlan. During the battle, at a certain point of time he was ambushed by many Wargles, which would have killed him had Will's unnamed father not stepped in and fought them off. After Gilan had became a fully fledged Ranger, Halt was alone again for a while. Soon he discovered Will, a young, small castle ward. He found out that he had been the son of the sergeant who had saved his life. He watched Will grow up with great interest, even witnessing him break into the Redmont kitchens as a younger boy. When Will was not picked by any craftsmasters during Choosing Day, Halt decided to take him in as a Ranger apprentice. During all of Will's training, Halt became very attached to him, thinking of Will as almost a son to him. His attachment to Will surpassed that of his former apprentice Gilan, which he totally understood. Despite his brooding and silent nature, Halt found that he became quite lonely and sad when Will wasn't around, even making him become sour and irritable, throwing trouble makers into moats and what-not. During his early months as Will's teacher, the two shared an acceptable acquaintance. Will, not yet used to Halt's behavior and turned off because of Halt's frequent criticisms, tended to keep his distance and the two did not often get into personal conversations. But after getting accustomed to each other, they began to build a relationship. Halt was not one to feed egos very often, but he had high confidence in Will's abilities and trusted him despite being quite early in his Ranger training. When the two Rangers helped a group of knights kill a large wild boar, Will and Horace were attacked by another boar, which was not noticed in time by the other knights and even Halt for a moment. Halt saw the boar just in time before it could attack Will and shot it in the heart, killing it instantly. Despite the fact that Will had been unable to kill the boar himself even after several shots, Halt was very proud of him for standing his ground and trying to protect his comrade Horace despite the two boys being rivals at the time. Halt showed more compassion for his apprentice when Will was encountered on by the three bullies that had been bothering Horace at his battleschool. The three bullies were beating Will with canes when Halt came out and yelled at them. One disrespected Halt by ordering him to keep out of battleschool business. Halt, angered by the boy's retort, punched him several times then instructed an approaching Horace to duel each of them with his wooden sword against their canes. When the boys asked for mercy, Halt simply said "of course not'". This event showed Halt's growing compassion for Will. When Halt, alongside Will and his former apprentice Gilan, went to the annual Ranger's Gathering, he learned about the recent activity of the Kalkara, minions of Morgarath. He came to a decision that he would hunt the Kalkara down, choosing to take Will and Gilan with him, despite having several older and more experienced Rangers present. They tracked the Kalkara through the Stone Flutes until they discovered that the Kalkara had become aware of them and were coming after them. Halt sent Will to get Baron Arald, Sir Rodney, and a small group of soldiers to assist in killing the Kalkara. When Will returned with the men, they found Halt already in a battle with one of the beasts. Halt's bow was smashed to pieces by the Kalkara's claw and it swiped at Halt's leg, leaving a deep gash there. Halt, still fighting, drew his throwing knife and closed his eyes to avoid the beast's petrifying stare. He acted on memory and instinct and threw the knife at it, where it struck home in the Kalkara's eye. Then Arald and Rodney charged in, but were easily defeated. The Baron was thrown aside and Rodney was transfixed by the animal's stare. Will, who had been told to stay back out of harms way, jumped out with a fire arrow and shot the Kalkara, hitting it in the chest and setting it on fire. The Kalkara fell and died slowly. When Halt had recovered from his injuries, he fairly informed Arald of Will's actions. The Baron took Will in to offer him a place in battleschool, and Will was tempted, but he remembered Halt and Tug and the pleasure of being part of the secretive force and refused, chosing to remain as Halt's apprentice. Halt was extrememly happy with his apprentice's choice, allowing one of his rare smiles as Will approached him. At this point, Halt and Will had formed a deep friendship and something of a father-son relationship.